Williams is recruiting an AI specialist with a background at Google.

It's already "silly season" at WilliamsWhile the future of Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon remains unknown, while their contracts expire in December 2026, the British team continues to strengthen behind the scenes. Following the announcement of the arrival of four new recruits in strategic positions from McLaren, Mercedes and Alpine, Williams has officially announced the arrival of Dr. James Smith.

Holding a PhD in computer science from the University of St Andrews, the Briton spent ten years at Google and DeepMind, where he led very large-scale product and platform teams. Notably, he designed Android's data platform, used by over 3,000 engineers and serving to guide performance decisions across more than three billion devices. He then co-founded Human Native AI, a venture capital-backed startup specializing in data and AI, which was acquired by Cloudflare earlier this year.

Extensive experience in several companies

He joins Williams as Chief Information Officer, or head of information systems. He will be responsible for guiding Williams through the technological transformation envisioned by James Vowles since his arrival. The Grove-based team already works with several partners, including Atlassian, Anthropic, VAST Data, Airia, Brillio, and Keeper Security, who contribute to improving on-track performance. Not to mention Claude, the AI ​​developed by Anthropic, whose logo is featured on the car.

“I am delighted to join Williams at a time when data and artificial intelligence are becoming increasingly important for performance, both on and off the track.” James Smith is appreciated. “Williams has an exceptional history, but what attracts me most is the ambition for the next phase of its development: building the systems, products, and culture needed to compete at the front of the grid. I hope to leverage my experience at Google, DeepMind, and in creating Human Native to help the team move quickly, use AI pragmatically, and turn complex ideas into tangible benefits.”

“Success in Formula 1 has always relied on combining technological innovation and top talent to achieve results on the track,” James Vowles agrees“As technology evolves at a breakneck pace, the new battleground in F1 lies in the ability to harness data and artificial intelligence across all aspects of the team. James has spent his entire career at this technological frontier—at Google, DeepMind, and building his own company from the ground up—and I’m delighted to welcome him to Williams as we continue to place technology at the heart of our ambition to fight at the very front.”

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